Grad Assistanship

Today I finally figured out what exactly my Graduate Assistantship is and what my responsibilities are. I met with Shanna Stuckey. She is the project coordinator for the Center for Urban and Multicultural Education (CUME) and it is this wonderful department at IUPUI that is paying the bill for my graduate school.

Quick side note: I had a mini heart attack last week when I got my Bursar bill. It said that I owed nearly $8000. I freaked out. I thought I just quit my job, left the only place I've ever lived, moved up to Bloomington, bought new furniture and signed an apartment lease. This would be a horrible time to find out my tuition and fees are not covered. A word of advice: if you are attending a public school and you are not a resident of that state, make sure that your contract covers not only tuition but fees as well. I had not asked that very important question. So I sent a very panic stricken email to Shanna, and waited to hear back from her. The next day she resolved the issue, and my bill went from $8000 to $350. Thanks be to God (Shanna & CUME too). Sorry - the quick story was a little longer than I had anticipated, but I digress 

So I am working at a research center on the campus of IUPUI, and I am very excited about it. My course work is at IU-Bloomington which is more of the traditional four year college. IUPUI is urban and has a good number of non-traditional students pursuing several different degrees. The best program at IUPUI is the Medical School which this year will become the largest medical school in the nation.

CUME oversees and around 30 different programs. Our ultimate goal is to create a sustained partnership with institutions that are interested in furthering scholarship in the area of urban education. Our largest grant comes from the Indianapolis Public School (IPS) system. Over the past four years, our program director Josh Smith has been successfully building more bridges with IPS  The program for which I will serve as student lead is the Woodrow Wilson Indiana Teaching Fellowship. This program was designed to bring working professionals back to the academy to teach STEM programs in secondary, middle and elementary schools. The program is funded at IUPUI by a $500K grant from the Woodrow Wilson Foundation. My job will be to assess the Fellows, IUPUI Faculty and teaching mentors in the program. Currently I love working for CUME. I couldn't dream of a better working environment. I'm hoping my work at CUME will help me to become a better research and a more knowledgeable scholar.

Firsts

I've been in Bloomington for almost a month now, and my transition into Bloomington and the midwest have been fairly seamless. People in Bloomington remind me a lot of people in Texas. Most people I have encountered (both inside and outside the university setting) have been very friendly, courteous and helpful. Today as I reflected on my current and future endeavors, I thought for you (my faithful blogging audience) I would put together a list of firsts for me in Bloomington. So here is a short list of things I came up with. This will be the first time:

• I have lived in a state other than Texas
• I have lived alone
• Have no family members within 100 mile radius 
• Be a student at a public university 
• As an alumni I will miss Baylor's homecoming
• I will not be able to eat at Ninfa's or Vitek's
• As an adult I do not have a full time job
• I will be one of a handful that refer to soft drinks as "coke"
• I will experience the four seasons (can't wait for fall)
• Attend a Big Ten Sporting Event
• I will no longer have a TX Drivers License and TX license plate 
• I will not drive home for Christmas or Thanksgiving
• I will be able to buy Gino's East frozen Chicago-style deep dish pizza
• My home airport will be Indianapolis International (NOT DFW/ Love Field)
• I will not be able to lead incoming freshmen in a Sic 'Em Bears
• I will not see my girlfriend every weekend

Many of these first I'm excited about (see: Chicago-style deep dish pizza), but others on the list are going to take some getting used to. Well that's all for today... Talk to you all soon.

What's in a name...

Shakespeare's character Romeo asked the poignant question, what's in a name? that which we call rose by any other name would smell as sweet. This name business is why for so many years I avoided diving into the blogosphere. If I were going to blog it was imperative that I create a blog with a cool name and an even cooler look and feel. Currently I have failed on both of those fronts, but my wonderful girlfriend will help me remedy the look and feel problem next weekend... hopefully.

So while I don't love the name of the blog it does hold some significance. It is a reflection of my current mind set and status in life. Sojourner Truth is one of the most amazing African American women in our nation's history. Born Isabella Baumfree she was able to escape her oppressors and fight to liberate herself. Immediately after gaining her freedom she petitioned for the emancipation of others slaves. Later on in life she was commissioned as a traveling preacher by the methodist church, and took up the new name Sojourner Truth.

In addition to this blog paying homage to the abolitionist and suffragette. I also wanted the name to reflect an element of my faith. Through out my life I have always felt that this place is not my home. That I am merely passing through. Like Abraham I am a stranger in a land unknown to me. I also wanted my blog title to have an element of wandering and searching, because for the next four (or five) years I will be a journeying as a stranger in a new land. My goal is to seek out truth wherever it may be found. So what's in a name? Hopefully  a lot. 

Welcome

So I did it! I finally did it. I made my first official blog. And if you are reading this, then you are a person that is important to me.  This blog is a way for me to keep you posted on what is going on in my world, and to also share the musings of an young man with an old soul. So enjoy!